DA: Cosby Won't Face Sex Assault Charges

PHILADELPHIA – Bill Cosby (search) will not face charges stemming from a woman's allegation that he fondled her at his suburban mansion after giving her medication that made her woozy, a prosecutor said Thursday.

Authorities found insufficient evidence to support the woman's claims, Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr (search). said in a statement.

A former Temple University (search) employee, who now lives in her native Ontario, told Canadian authorities last month that, after a night out with friends in January 2004, Cosby gave her medication that made her dizzy, then fondled her. She said she later awoke to find her bra undone and her clothes in disarray.

Cosby, 67, a Temple alumnus and booster, has denied the allegations. In a statement Thursday, his lawyer said Cosby was gratified by the decision.

Castor has said that the accuser's yearlong delay in coming forward, and her contact with Cosby in the past year, weighed in the comedian's favor.

The prosecutor said he also reviewed claims by other people that Cosby had "behaved inappropriately" toward them, but that detectives could find no instance "where anyone complained to law enforcement of conduct which would constitute a criminal offense."

The woman's attorney called the evidence strong and blasted Castor for failing to notify her before announcing his decision. The woman is likely to sue Cosby, attorney Dolores M. Troiani said.

"I think that's the only avenue open to her," Troiani said late Thursday after speaking with her client.

"She felt, as we did, that it's a very strong case and that she was telling the truth and that Mr. Castor's opinion does not change the facts," she said.

Troiani said her client gave prosecutors tapes of telephone calls between Cosby and the family that bolster the allegations. The calls occurred after her client contacted police, the lawyer said.

Cosby's publicist, David Brokaw, declined comment Thursday on whether the comedian had any telephone contact with the family since the investigation began.

Castor, who announced the decision on his Web site, said he did not plan any further comment for fear his comments would be used as evidence in any possible civil lawsuit.

"Much exists in this investigation that could be used (by others) to portray persons on both sides of the issue in a less-than-flattering light," he said.

It is the policy of The Associated Press not to publish names of alleged sexual assault victims without their consent.